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Power semiconductors help extend range, keeping their cool while improving efficiency at higher voltages.

Electrified vehicle designers are pushing semiconductor technologies to help them extend ranges and reduce the weight of battery packs. Power semiconductor improvements are helping powertrain designers move to higher voltages and reduce losses while managing a battery pack's nemesis, heat.

Falling oil prices curtailed electrified vehicle sales during 2014. Hybrid volumes dropped, with market share of just 2.8%, according to a survey by HybridCars.com and Baum & Associates. In the U.S., plug-in vehicle sales soared by 23% in 2014, yet still barely cracked 120,000, according to InsideEVs.